Why do so many people swallow whole fake news? Why do we believe things that are patently false (like the 2016 rumor that Hillary Clinton was somehow molesting or kidnapping children in a fast food restaurant?) Today’s Global New York Times has an Op-Ed that has some strong answers. It is written by Prof. Gordon Pennycook, from my hometown Regina, Saskatchewan, and co-author David Rand, MIT.* The bottom line: Education is not the answer. More educated people fall for fake news, too, especially fake news that agrees with their views. We fall for fake news, because we are unable or unwilling to engage in critical thinking – to challenge everythng we read critically, and subject it to the laws of reason and logic. Critical thinking is a key skill that is taught far too little in schools and universities. At Queen’s University, long ago, I took a compulsory course in Philosophy, in the days when all university students were required to know some literature, philosophy and history. It was the best course I ever took. I learned about logic, about ethics, and about metaphysics. And I learned about critical thinking. A critical thinker asks, is this true? Is it based on strong facts? What are the facts? Is it logical? Does the conclusion follow from the premises? What are the sources? The enemy of critical thinking is the Internet news mania. Internet news has a news cycle of seconds. Everything is instant. There is no time for reflection or challenging thought. So – let’s slow it down.

Build yourself a news microscope. Focus it. Zero it in on news. Think critically. Reserve judgment as you do so. Just because Buzzfeed is in a big hurry does not mean that we all have to be.

• “Why do people fall for fake news?” Gordon Pennycook and David Rand. New York Times, Tuesday January 22 2019.